The Song Walker by Zillah Bethell

Where am I?

What am I doing here?

Who am I?

When a young girl wakes up in the middle of the desert, she has no idea who she is. She’s wearing one shoe, a black dress, and she is carrying a strange, heavy case.

She meets Tarni, who is on a quest of her own. Together, the two girls trek across the vast and ever-changing Australian Outback in search of answers. Except both are also hiding secrets…

The Song Walker is a book to experience, to search inside for truth and identity alongside this lost girl in a challenging landscape. Discovering and remembering with this mysterious character with a forgotten back-story allows the reader to look inside themselves for their own story – their own song.

Life is a composition and memories the notes that build up our unique melodies. Without them, the girl has nothing – or does she actually have everything? The music of her life has left her, allowing her to start again and determine what is truly important to her.

As she travels with Tarni, she discovers the importance of another type of song – the traditional Australian First Country songs that act as road maps for Tarni’s people. She knows where to go and how to survive because of the songs that have been passed on to her by her wise ancestors. There is so much value in these traditions and in this culture that is not recognised by the wider world. Tarni sees it in the imbalance of power between herself and the white community as well as in the importance put on the life of a white girl but not on that of a First Country girl. Zillah Bethell weaves this powerful message of equality, empathy and challenge into the threads of the story as the two girls build a relationship and come to rely on each other in different ways.

Above all, identity is key to this story. Who is this lost girl? What is her name? Every name has a meaning and as she embarks on an incredible journey, she learns more about who she is through the names Tarni gives her. Not only does she need to find her family and her home, but she needs to find herself.

Intense and so intriguing, The Song Walker is a book like no other. Spirituality and questions of existence run through it with a maturity that will challenge young readers. They will come away from it stronger in themselves, more compassionate towards others and thinking deeply about who they really are.

Thank you to Fritha Lindqvist & Usborne for an early copy of this stunning book!

February 2023

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